Pin elevator utilizing centrifugal force



NOV 23, 1965 M. G. GAUTRAUD ETAL 3,219,346

PIN ELEVATOR UTILIZING CENTRIFUGAL FORCE Filed Jan. 2l, 1965 N ENTO I GVAUT'/SAUD Mc E00 M/CHAEZ oA/ Pd. @am

f M ATI'ORNEW United States Patent ,219,346 PIN ELEVATOR UTILIZING CENTRIFUGAL FORCE Michael G. Gautraud and David P. J. McLeod, Muskegon,

Mich., assignors to Brunswick Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Jan. 21, 1963, Ser. No. 252,795 Claims. (Cl. 273-43) This invention relates to a bowling pin handling mechanism for use in automatic pinsetters. More particularly this invention relates to a bowling pin elevating mechanism, such as a rotating wheel or ring-type pin elevator.

Pin elevating mechanisms are commonly used in automatic pinsetters to receive pins from the alley pit at a position in the alley pit for elevation to a discharge position above the pit from which position the pins are conveyed, e.g. by a cross conveyor, to a pin distributing and setting mechanism. The pin elevating mechanism may conveniently be a pin elevating Wheel or ring which consists in part of a rotatable large Wheel opstanding adjacent the rear of the pit and supported by guide rollers at the bottom and top. Bowling pins are picked up in the pit at a pin pick-up position by the rotating wheel in pin pockets within the wheel and are carried circumferentially upward by the wheel to an elevated pin delivery station or position where the pins are permitted to fall from the wheel to be fed onto the cross conveyol mechanism, e.g. through a pin turnaround pan. A pin guide assembly holds the pins in place as they are carried up to the delivery station. The pin wheel is usually U-shaped in cross section for ease in pin pick-up and pin delivery. The pin guide assembly includes barrier members positioned to keep the pins from falling from the wheel on either side of the pin delivery station due to forces of gravity. Such assembly may include, for example, auxiliary stationary wipers before and after the delivery station to maintain the pins substantially within their receptacles or pockets within the wheel except at the delivery station. Thus, the pins are carried to the delivery station at or adjacent the upper reach of the rotating wheel and are then permitted to fall from the wheel to be conveyed to the pin distributing mechanism.

It is a general object of this invention to provide a new and improved pin elevating mechanism for use in automatic pinsetter equipment.

Another object is to provide a new and useful pin conveying mechanism of the type described for receiving pins from a source at a bowling alley pit and delivering the pins to an elevated position for use in a pin distributing mechanism forming a part of, or intended for use in connection with, an automatic pinsetter.

A further object is to provide a new and useful pin elevating wheel or ring mechanism which is capable of operation in the absence of a pin guide assembly for maintaining the pins within the wheel during rotation of the wheel, or with a pin guide assembly which is greatly reduced in size.

Still another object is to provide a new and useful bowling pin elevator which includes a rotatable pin elevating wheel or ring adapted to receive bowling pins at a pin pick-up station to carry the bowling pins to an elevated pin discharge or delivery station, a plurality of bowling pin receptacles disposed circumferentially within the wheel, means for rotating the wheel at a rate sufficient to maintain bowling pins within the receptacles by centrifugal force `and means capable of counteracting the centrifugal force suiiicient to discharge the pins from the wheel.

Further objects and advantages will become readily apparent from the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevation of an embodiment of a pin elevating wheel and associated mechanism for use in an automatic pinsetter;

FIGURE 2 is a front view of the pin elevator wheel of FIGURE 1; and

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary perspective view showing a pin pocket formed on the internal periphery of the pin elevating wheel.

While illustrative embodiments of the invention are shown and will be described in detail with reference to the drawings herein, the invention is susceptible of ernbodiment in many different forms, and it should be understood that the present disclosure is to be considered as an exemplication of the principles of the invention and is not intended to limit the scope to the embodiments described.

It is contemplated that the pin handling mechanism of this invention can be utilized in connection with an automatic pinsetter installation which would include means for gathering the pins in the pit of the bowling alley for pick-up by the pin elevating mechanism which elevates the pins to a position at which they are discharged, e.g. through a turnaround pan, a pin conveying mechanism which receives the pins and conveys them to a pin distributing mechanism for depositing the pins in a pin setting deck which is capable of lowering and setting the pins on a pin supporting surface.

Referring now to the drawings generally, bowling pins are gathered in a bowling `alley pit by a pit conveyor mechanism 11 and are picked up by the lower reach of pin elevating mechanism 12 which elevates the pins and deposits them in pin turnaround pan 13. Pin turnaround pan 13 functions in the normal manner to deposit the pins base' rst on `a cross conveyor mechanism 14 which in turn delivers the pins singly to a pin distributing chute generally designated 15. The pin distributing chute passes pins to a pin receiver, such as an indexable turret which in turn delivers the pins to a movable deck structure therebeneath which moves from a raised position to a lowered position for setting pins on the alley in the conventional triangular arrangement. The deck structure also functions to lift standing pins after a ball has been bowled during a period when deadwood is being removed from the alley and to replace the lifted pins preparatory to the rolling of a second ball. The automatic pinsetter equipment referred to, including the pin receiver, movable deck structure and suitable means for gathering pins from the pit and conveying the pins from the elevating mechanism to the distributing mechanism, is now well known in the art (eg. see Huck et al., U.S. 2,967,708, patented January 10, 1961) and `as its detailed structure is conventional, such structure need not be described in more detail herein.

The present invention lbroadly utilizes centrifugal force in a pin elevating wheel to enable the wheel or ring to contain bowling pins while elevating pins to an elevated delivery station. The wheel is thereby also enabled to carry the pins over or past the delivery station when desired. The centrifugal force is counteracted to discharge pins as desired or needed ,from the 4Wheel at the delivery station so that the pins can be used by the pin distributing and setting mechanisms. For example, the centrifugal force can be counteracted by applying a second force to the pins to eject the pins from the wheel, e.g. by inserting a rigid member, preferably angularly, into the circumferential path of the pins to eject or divert the pins from the wheel. As another example, the centrifugal force can be counteracted -by decreasing the rotational speed of the wheel below that speed necessary to maintain the pins within the wheel at the pin delivery station by centrifugal force so that the pins are permitted to drop from the wheel at a pin delivery station adjacent the upper reach of the wheel. In the latter example, it may be desirable to provide very short pin guiding orholding members adjacent the pin delivery station although with proper control of the rotational speed of the wheel, such members may not be necessary.

Referring now to the drawings in more detail, pit board is contained in a bowling alley pit and receives pins knocked into the pit by a bowling ball and swept from the alley by a pin sweep mechanism normally included in automatic pin setting equipment for clearing the alley of deadwood between bowled balls. Pit board 20 is of conventional structure and reciprocates toward and away from pin pick-up station 23 to cause migration of pins toward the pick-up station. At pick-up station 23, pin elevating wheel 24 is positioned having its interior in communication with pit board 20 for receiving pins therefrom.

Pin elevating wheel 24 is mounted in upstanding position at the rear of the alley pit. The pin elevating mechanism or structure 12 is supported by means of a framework adjacent the rear of the alley pit including a circular frame member 33 conforming generally to the configuration of the pin elevating ring. Near the lower extremity of circular frame member 33, the frame member is provided with supporting brackets 29 adjacent opposite sides of the pit which are welded or otherwise secured to frame member 33. The brackets 29 include leg portions 29a which are attached to flat base portions 31 adapted to rest on the loor of the alley pit and to be secured thereto by suitable means such as screws. The circular frame member 33 is additionally supported at opposite sides of the pit at positions approximately midway in its height by means of brackets 3S welded or otherwise secured to the circular frame member 33 and extending outwardly therefrom to be supported on and suitably secured to sidewalls 40 of the alley pit.

Referring to FIGURES 2 and 3, pin elevating mechanism 12 includes the rotatable pin elevating ring 24 having radially inwardly turned flanges 41 and pocket forming members 42 defining evenly spaced pin receiving pockets 43 formed on the inner periphery of the ring for elevating pins from a pick-up position adjacent the rear of the alley to an elevated discharge station. The pockets 43 are each adapted to receive the belly of a pin with either the base or head end leading.

Pin elevating ring 24 is disposed rearwardly of circular frame member 33 and is supported near the lower extremity by means of ilanged guide rollers 27 which are mounted on the supporting brackets 29 by means of shafts 30. The guide rollers 27 for the pin elevating ring are mounted at a height providing the entrance lip 24a of wheel or ring 24 in line with or slightly lower than pit board 20 for proper communication of the elevating ring with the pit board at the pin pick-up position. rl`he pin elevating ring 24 is guided near its upper extremity by means of flanged guide rollers 36 which are mounted by means of shafts 37 on yokes 35 attached to brackets 34 which are welded or otherwise secured to circular frame member 33.

The pin elevating ring 24 is driven in a clockwise direction as viewed in FIGURE 2 by means of a drive belt 90 extending around a substantial portion of the preiphery of the ring at the forward edge thereof, as shown in FIGURE 2, trained about a drive pulley 91 mounted on a drive shaft 92 supported by brackets secured to a suitable framework (not shown). The drive shaft 92 is driven by means of a large pulley 93 having a belt 94 trained thereabout and over a smaller pulley 96 secured to a driven power shaft, e.g. the output shaft of an electric motor. Thus, the pin elevating ring may be continuously driven during operation of the pinsetter to continuously elevate pins directed to the pick-up position by the vibrating shaker tray or pit board 20 provided in the pit.

In order to keep pins being conveyed toward pin elevating ring 24 by pit conveyor mechanism 11 from being delivered Iby pit board 20 beneath wheel or ring 24, triangular plates 39 are secured to circular frame member 33 and other suitable framing to block the entry of pins to the spaces beneath pin elevating ring 24 so that the pins on pit board 20 will more assuredly be directed toward pin pick-up station 23 to be received by the elevating r1ng.

Pin elevating mechanism 12 is also provided with a plow or claw mem-ber 45 which vis pivotally mounted at 47 to bracket 46 which is secured to the alley ybackwall or a frame or other support member indicated generally at 44. The arm of plow member 45 extends to a pivot pin linkage 49 with operating arm 48. Operating arm 48 can be actuated, e.g. manually to pivot plow 45 into the wheel for obtaining pins as needed by the pin distributing mechanism. Plow 45 is provided with an angular surface for engaging and detlecting pins from the wheel. A suitable operating linkage from the pin distributing mechanism may be provided for actuating bar 48 if desired responsive to pin needs.

At pin delivery station 25, there is provided a pin turnaround pan 13, of usual construction, for receiving pins delivered from pin elevating ring 24 at station 25. The pin turnaround pan or pin receiving tray is so formed that regardless of whether it receives a pin from the pin elevating mechanism with the head of the pin leading or the base of the pin leading, the tray is effective to direct the pin toward cross conveyor mechanism 14 with the base of the pin leading and the head trailing. Cross conveyor mechanism 14 includes a cross conveyor belt 16 supported by pulleys 61 and 62 on shafts 63 and 64 respectively. The cross conveyor is continuously operating with the upper reach of conveyor belt 60, as shown in FIGURE l, traveling toward the right to convey pins toward pin gate 65. Shaft 63 is driven by suitable pulley and belt arrangements (not shown) extending to a motor output shaft. Pin gate 65 is of conventional structure and operates to normally block the passage of pins from the cross conveyor to distributor chute 70, but is movable under control of means, e.g. in a central gear box, to a depressed position to permit the passage of pins to distributor chute 70. Movement of the pin gate 65 may be controlled by such means as that described and illustrated by Alexander J. Albrecht and J ames B. Wyatt in U.S. Patent 3,014,721, patented December 26, 1961, for example, to time and space the delivery of pins from the conveyor to the distributor one at a time at intervals coordinated with the timed needs of the pin distributing mechanism 15.

Pin distributor chute 70 functions to receive pins from the cross conveyor mechanism 14 and distributes the pins sequentially to a plurality of pin receptacles, e.g. in a pin turret (not shown) for use by the pinsetting mechanism (not shown). The pin distributing chute and turret arrangement and pinsetting structure mechanism may be such as that described by the Huck et al. patent cited above. The distributor chute delivers nine pins to peripheral receptacles in a pin receiving turret and, for the tenth pin, the chute is actuated to pivot or drop into position to fill the central turret receptacle corresponding to the number 5 pin in the usual manner.

In operation, pulley 96 is driven in a counterclockwise direction and, by means of belt 94, pulleys 93 and 91, and belt 90, drives wheel 24 in clockwise direction as viewed in FIGURE Z. The wheel can be rotated at a speed sufficient to maintain any pins therein within pockets 43 even at the upper reach of the rotating wheel. The rotating wheel 24 receives pins at pick-up station 23 from pit board 20 in conventional manner. The pins become properly seated in pockets 43 and are carried by the wheel arcuately upward to and past the pin ejection station 25, assuming that plow 45 is in its withdrawn dotted line position as viewed in FIGURE l. The wheel 24 may be constructed of a size or capacity to handle any convenient number of pins fed thereto at pin receiving station 23. Thus, with plow 24 withdrawn, the rotating wheel functions as a pin storage means ready for delivery of pins for use by the pin distributing mechanismas desired or needed.

When it is desired to eject pins from the pin delivery station 25, e.g. for use by the pin distributing mechanism, operating arm 48 is moved to the right as viewed in FIGURE 1 and plow 45 is thereby pivoted into the rotating pin wheel adjacent station 25 as shown in full lines in FIGURES 1 and 2. Pins normally held within their pockets in wheel 24 by centrifugal force during rotation of the wheel, strike the angular surface of plow member 45 and are deflected or diverted into pin turnaround pan 13. Operating arm 48 can then be moved again to the left as viewed in FIGURE 1 for removal of the plow and can be reinjected into the moving stream of pins each time a subsequent pin is needed by the distributing mechanism. Alternatively, plow 45 can be retained in pin ejecting position, i.e. projecting within the rotating wheel, until a desired number of pins have been deflected to pin turnaround pan 13. Manual operation of arm 48 is effective for ejecting pins; however, in some modifications of the device it may be desirable to move arm 48 longitudinally in both directions by means of a suitable motor means, eg. a solenoid responsive to pin needs of a pin distributor. Other modifications will be apparent.

The pin turnaround pan 13 functions to deposit pins base first on the upper reach of conveyor belt 16 in the usual manner. The conveyor belt, also conventional, conveys pins to the pin distributing mechanism and deposits them, for example, in chute 70, for distribution to the pinsetting structure. Pin gate 65 operates in the usual manner to block the passage of pins from cross conveyor 14 when pins are not required by the pin distributing mechanism and to permit spaced passage of pins when such pins are required.

For operation without the use of plow member 45, pin wheel 24 is rotated as above and receives pins at pin receiving station 23 as above. When it is desired to deliver pins from station 25, the output speed of variable speed motor 97 is adjusted to decrease the rotational speed of wheel 24 to a speed less than that necessary to maintain the pins within their pockets and within the wheel at the upper reach of the wheel, but still sufficient to carry the pins substantially to the upper reach. The pins are thereby caused to fall from the wheel at station Z5 and into pin turnaround pan 13 from which they proceed over cross-conveyor 14 to distributing mechanism as set up hereinabove. In such operation, it may be advantageous to provide short lengths of wiper elements 98 and 99 on each side of the pin delivery station 25 to prevent pins at such positions, e.g. P-2 and P-3, from falling from the wheel. The length of wiper elements 98 and 99 will, of course, depend somewhat on the speed of rotation of wheel 24 below the speed necessary to maintain the pins in their pockets by centrifugal force and the lengths of such wiper elements can readily be determined by those in the art. Wiper elements are in conventional use in pin elevating wheels and their structures are well known to those in the art.

The theoretical speed necessary to maintain the pins within the wheel by centrifugal force for a given wheel or given pin weight, can be readily determined by those of ordinary skill in the art by calculation and/or simple experimentation. However, it has been found that the actual yspeed used can be considerably less than the theoretical speed and it i-s preferred to use the slower than theoretical speed for easier control of the wheel and ejection of pins and for easier pick-up of pins by the wheel from the pit at the pin pick-up station. However, the speed should be sufficient to carry the pins over the uppermost reach -of the wheel and past the ejection station whenever it is not desired to eject pins. As an eX- ample of a suitable speed and in further illustration of the operation of a pin elevating wheel in accordance herewith, a pin elevating wheel having a rotational speed of about 7 r.p.m. in normal operation and without the adaptations of the present invention was modified in accordance herewith. The wheel was rotated at 2() r.p.m. and adapted as shown and described with reference to FIGURES 13 above, employing a plow member such as member 45. The calculated theoretical speed to maintain the pins in the wheel was 34 r.p.m. At 20 r.p.m. the pins did n-ot fall out of the wheel into the turnaround pan at the upper reach of the wheel but, in the absence of the plow member, were carried over the turnaround pan and fell back into the pit. Provision of a suitable wiper element beyond the turnaround pan or still greater increase in rotational speed of the wheel would maintain the pins within the wheel and convert the wheel itself t-o a pin storage system. Where no such provision is made to keep the pins from falling back to the pit upon passing station 25, the combination of pit and elevating wheel provides storage means for the pins with a generally cyclic stream of pins through the pit and wheel being maintained for ready delivery to the distributing structure as desired or needed. It was found that the plow member or ejector element was capable of effectively ejecting the pins from the wheel (rotating at 20 r.p.m.) to the turnaround pan whether the pins were positioned base or head first within the wheel with respect to their striking the ejector element.

It is apparent from the foregoing that the present invention utilizes centrifugal force in a pin elevating wheel to enable the wheel to contain pins while elevating the pins to an elevated discharge station and either eject the pins from the wheel at the discharge station or carry the pins past the discharge station as desired by selectively counteracting or maintaining the centrifugal force respectively.

We claim:

1. A bowling pin elevator which comprises a rotatable pin elevator wheel adapted to receive and contain bowling pins, means for rotating said wheel at a rate suicient to maintain bowling pins in said wheel by centrifugal force and means capable of counteracting said centrifugal force suicient to discharge pins from said wheel.

2. The bowling pin elevator of claim 1 wherein the means capable of counteracting the centrifugal force is a rigid member adapted to divert pins from said wheel while said wheel is rotating.

3. The bowling pin elevator of claim 1 wherein said means capable of counteracting the centrifugal force consists essentially of means for reducing the rate of rotation of said wheel below that rate suflicient to maintain the bowling pins in the wheel by centrifugal force.

4. A bowling pin elevator comprising, a rotatable pin elevator wheel adapted to receive bowling pins at its lower reach, a plurality of bowling pin receptacles disposed circumferentially within said wheel for receiving bowling pins within said wheel, an elevated discharge station adjacent the upper reach of said wheel for discharge of bowling pins from lsaid wheel, means for rotating said wheel at a rate suicient to maintain bowling pins within said receptacles by centrifugal force and rigid means insertable between pins in said wheel for deflecting pins from said wheel at said discharge ystation while said wheel is rotating at said rate.

5. The bowling pin elevator of claim 4 wherein said rigid means is a pivotally mounted plow member having an angular surface adapted for insertion with the angular surface in the normal path of pins within the wheel, said angular surface being suicient to eject pins from said wheel at said discharge station.

6. A pin handling mechanism for use with an automatic pinsetter mounted on a bowling alley comprising,

in combination, a vertically disposed framework mounted vadjacent the rear of the -alley pit, a rotatable ring-shaped pin elevating member mounted on said framework and having circumferentially spaced pin receptacles on its inner periphery for elevating pins from a position adjacent the tioor of the alley pit to an elevated discharge position, mean-s for rotating said elevating member at a rate sufficient to maintain bowling pins within said receptacles by centrifugal force whereby bowling pins within the elevating member are carried past said discharge position and means capable of counteracting said centrifugal force suicient to discharge pins from said wheel at said discharge position.

7. A bowling pin elevator which comprises a rotatable pin elevator Wheel adapted to receive and c-ontain bowling pins, a plurality of bowling pin receptacles disposed circumferentially within said wheel, means for continu- -ously rotating said wheel at a rate sufficient to maintain the bowling pins therein by centrifugal force and deflection means selectively insertable between pins in said wheel at an elevated discharge position for deflecting pins from said wheel.

8. A pin conveying means for use with a pin distributing and setting structure mounted on a bowling alley with a pit at the rear end of the alley provided with means for directing pins to a pick-up position, which pin conveying means comprises a framework adjacent the pit, a pin elevating mechanism mounted on the framework to elevate pins from a pick-up position adjacent the oor of the alley pit to an elevated pin discharge position, means including a conveyor for conveying pins forwardly from the pin discharge position for use in the pinsetter, said pin elevating mechanism including a pin elevator wheel adapted to receive bowling pins from said pick-up position and having a plurality of bowling pin receptacles disposed circumferentially on the inner periphery of said wheel, means for rotating said wheel at a rate sufcient to maintain bowling pins within said receptacles by centrifugal force, means at said discharge position adapted to be inserted into said wheel in the cyclic path of bowling pins within said wheel for deecting bowling pins from said wheel at said pin discharge position for deposition on said conveyor means, said conveyor means being adapted to convey pins from said discharge station to the pin distributing structure and operating means on said deflection mean-s for urging said deflection means int-o said wheel to supply the pin needs of said pin distributing structure, said deiiection means when operated by said operating means being capable of intermittently pivoting into and out of said wheel between pin receptacles in said Wheel for deflection of bowling pins from said wheel.

9. A bowling pin elevator which comprises a rotatable pin elevator wheel adapted to receive and contain bowling pins, and adju-stable variable speed means for r-otating said wheel at a first rate of rotation sufficient to maintain bowling pins in said wheel by centrifugal force and at a second rate of rotation below the rate necessary to maintain the bowling pins in the wheel by centrifugal force.

10. A bowling pin elevator which comprises a rotatable pin elevator wheel adapted to receive pins at a pin receiving station and elevate the pins to a pin discharge station and carry the elevated pins beyond the discharge station for return to the pick-up station during rotation of said wheel at a first rate sufficient to maintain the bowling pins in the Wheel at the discharge station by centrifugal force, and to permit discharge of pins by falling from the wheel at the discharge stati-on during rotation of said wheel at -a second rate below said rst rate, insucient to maintain the bowling pins in the wheel by centrifugal force, and variable speed means for rotating said wheel at each of said two rates.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,973,720 9/1934 Loekie 221--167 X 3,004,761 10/1961 Congelli et al 273-43 3,017,184 1/1962 Gruss 273-43 DELBERT B. LOWE, Primary Examiner. 

1. A BOWLING PIN ELEVATOR WHICH COMPRISES A ROTATABLE PIN ELEVATOR WHEEL ADAPTED TO RECEIVE AND CONTAIN BOWLING PINS, MEANS FOR ROTATING SAID WHEEL AT A RATE SUFFICIENT TO MAINTAIN BOWLING PINS IN SAID WHEEL BY CENTRIFUGAL FORCE AND MEANS CAPABLE OF COUNTERACTING SAID CENTRIFUGAL FORCE SUFFICIENT TO DISCHARGE PINS FROM SAID WHEEL. 